Mirabai Chanu became the first weightlifter in history from India to clinch the silver medal as she secured the feat in the Tokyo Olympics 2020 in the 49kg category.
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In the history of India in the Olympics, there were seven silver medals before Tokyo 2020. When it came to individuals, Norman Pritchard, PV Sindhu, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Vijay Kumar, and Sushil Kumar were the individual medal winners. On July 24, 2021, at 12:02 PM IST, an eighth was added. Saikhom Mirabai Chanu became the first Indian to win silver at weightlifting. It was India’s first medal in weightlifting since Karnam Malleswari’s brilliance in the 2000 Sydney Games when she secured bronze.
What was heartening for Mirabai Chanu was that she was the only one of two people to go past 200. In the final event, she lifted an Olympic record of 115 kg. But, China’s Zhihu Hou went slightly better and lifted 116 kg to ensure that she had secured the gold. A difference of six points meant that Chanu ultimately settled for silver, which was confirmed once USA’s JE Delacruz lifted only 108 kg. For Chanu, the experience of 2020 has erased all the pain that she suffered in the years prior to her feat in Tokyo.
In the 2016 Rio Olympics, Mirabai Chanu was touted for great success. She had secured silver in the 48kg category during the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games. But, disaster struck for Chanu in Rio. Mirabai failed to lift 104kg in her first attempt in clean and jerk, followed by two more attempts to pick up 106kg. In her second and third attempts, the Indian simply couldn’t lift the weight which was below her then personal best of 107 kg.
In fact out of six chances – three in snatch and three in clean and jerk – Mirabai got only one successful lift. The disaster of Rio made her strong-willed and even more determined to gun for glory in the subsequent Olympics.
The first sign of the recovery was in 2017 in Anaheim, California. Mirabai Chanu won the gold medal in the World Weightlifting Championships. She became only the second after Karnam Malleswari to achieve the feat.
Things started looking up for Mirabai Chanu in 2018. In the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Chanu lifted a total of 196 kg, 86 kg in Snatch and 110 kg in Clean and Jerk to win the first gold medal for the country in this event. The success of 2018 continued in her other tournaments in the build-up to Tokyo. In the 2019 Asian Weightlifting Championships, she just missed out on a bronze. She continued her breaking her personal bests by lifting over 200 kgs in the Asian and Senior National Championships.
The string of good results saw Mirabai been in good shape for Tokyo 2020. Despite the postponement due to the coronavirus pandemic, Mirabai Chanu was in good shape.
In the last couple of games, Haryana and Manipur have given glory to India in international events. Haryana has given India glory in wrestling and boxing. Manipur has also now emerged as the new hub thanks to Mary Kom in boxing and now Mirabai Chanu in weightlifting. The determination and the urge to do well in the Olympics now resonated strongly.
“I want gold, not silver in Tokyo,” Mirabai Chanu had emphatically declared before the games. There was confidence and belief for her. Mirabai was lifting heavier weights and was consistently topping the 200 kg benchmark. She had moved to third in the rankings with an average of 205.
From the disaster of Rio, Mirabai Chanu rarely slipped out of the top. She secured four consecutive top finishes from 2017 to 2019. Her streak ended with a fourth-placed finish in the Asian Championships. Prior to Tokyo, she finished in the podium in the Asian Championships in 2021. The streak that she had built has ensured that she became the first Olympic medalist from India in 2021 Tokyo.
Wrestling had put Haryana on the map in the Olympics from 2008 to 2016. Mary Kom kept the flag of Manipur high with her boxing. Now, one hopes that Mirabai Chanu’s silver creates a revolution in weightlifting.
